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National Unconference Day May 2, 2011

May 1, 2011 By

As we wrap up April’s theme of e-learning it’s apropos that tomorrow is National Unconference Day and 8bitlibrary along with the Learning Round Table will be hosting some online learning events. While it might be a little short notice to host your own unconference, we hope that you can take advantage of the free sessions and back channels via Twitter and the unconference chat room.

You can RSVP on Facebook and help tweet the link: http://on.fb.me/h2DG7r #libuncon

At 1pm EDT head over to https://ala.ilinc.com/ . You might want to sign in about 15 minutes before the event so you have time to work out any tech issues.

The  Twitter hashtag is #libuncon and the chat-room unconference link is: tinychat.com/8bitlibrary. We’re also hoping people share what they learned and accomplished by tagging posts with libuncon!

We’ll be streaming a free keynote session full of lightning talks to all participating librarians, libraries and library organizations. Our confirmed speakers include:

Where ever you are tomorrow, we hope to see you online!

Filed Under: Feature, LearnRT News Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

E-learning Through the Alphabet

April 25, 2011 By

E-learning and e-learners, as ALA Learning colleague Mary Beth Faccioli noted in her own article late last week, are taking a variety of interesting directions.

We are seeing new models explored by those providing as well as engaging in what is variously referred to as e-learning, distance learning, online learning, computer-based learning, and other variations that could probably create a blog-length list. When we drill down a bit into specific variations on the theme, we’re also seeing forms of online learning for almost every letter of the alphabet: m-learning (learning via mobile devices) as well as what are only half-jokingly being referred to as t-learning (learning delivered via Twitter) and s-learning (learning delivered via Skype), for example.

The more we explore best practices and innovations in e-learning, the more we realize how much we still have to learn and absorb. And yet there is something basic that connects all of these various and varied options: delivery of learning at the moment of need combined with learners’ willingness to drive the learning process. Through synchronous and asynchronous offerings. In the form of blog pieces—like those published here at ALA Learning and imbedded with enough links to provide the equivalent of an entire well-planned lesson. Through online bibliographies which in themselves lead learners to a variety of resources on e-learning itself so they can explore those resources when they are ready to explore, not when someone else tells them they should. Through the formal online courses and workshops such as those provided through ALA TechSource and many other ecourse publishers and providers, as well as through podcasts such as Maurice Coleman’s continuing T is for Training series—the sort of offerings that can be enjoyed when they are first offered or revisited by individuals and groups accessing those lessons through online archives.

I’m not among those who believes e-learning will or even should replace face-to-face learning; I’m far more sympathetic to the many great trainer-teacher-learners who insist that e-learning is simply part of the much larger field in which we play—learning—and that the sort of either-or options foisted upon us by those who insist that any one sort of learning will replace all others are creating rather than removing barriers to our ability to offer and engage in effective learning options.

Much has been written about Personal Learning Environments—we’ve seen great pieces here on ALA Learning, and I still return to Michele Martin’s pieces on The Bamboo Project blog when I’m in need of a refresher course on the topic—and I believe the recognition of the importance of these personal learning environments is an important part of our e-learning toolkit.

For those who are trying to wrap their hands and minds around the entire concept, there’s a lot of comfort in the idea that e-learning is an expansive and fairly flexible learning medium. And it’s even more comforting to discover that through our colleagues, the postings at ALA Learning, and the numerous other resources we and our colleagues discover and share on an almost daily basis, we will never be short of resources. As long as we are willing to explore.

Filed Under: E-Learning, Feature Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A Model to Support Self-Directed Elearning

April 21, 2011 By

As trainers and instructional designers, many of us are becoming more and more involved with asynchronous, self-directed elearning. Some of us are designing courses ourselves for staff. Many more are directing staff to existing courses via WebJunction, or through providers like LE@D or the University of Wisconsin-Madison SLIS.

The Good and the Bad of Self-Directed Elearning

There are well-known advantages to self-directed elearning. These include:

  • reduced travel cost and time
  • can be taken most any time and any place with an Internet-connected device
  • cost effectiveness – courses are often reasonably priced relative to real-time training
  • standardization – all learners get the same information
  • learners can control their own experience, work at their own pace and repeat content as needed
  • learners have the freedom to explore and to fail without a roomful of peers and an instructor watching

These advantages are compelling and can lead organizations to blindly adopt self-directed elearning for staff development. But there are downsides for learners worth considering. The big ones include:

  • lack of motivation to complete courses or trouble managing time without start-and-end-date structure
  • learners feel isolated and miss the opportunity to share ideas, get clarification or have questions answered
  • it can be more of a challenge to transfer what’s learned to the real-world work environment

Moore’s Three Interactions

Moore's Three InteractionsWhen I think about learning and addressing disadvantages like these, I often come back to Moore’s Three Types of Interaction. Moore’s three interactions are:

  1. learner with content,
  2. learner with instructor or expert, and
  3. learner with learner.

This is a simple framework that can be applied whenever we want to maximize learning.

“Learner with content” interaction is what we typically think about when we consider education—reading a text, listening to a lecture. This is the common interaction in a self-directed elearning course.

“Learner with expert” interactions go beyond the dump of information typically associated with a lecture or the standard click-and-read elearning course. Learner-expert interactions are important for clarification of concepts and providing alternative explanations for different learners with different styles and levels of understanding. They also provide essential guidance with applying what’s learned to the real world.

“Learner with learner” interactions are important for learners to test and synthesize their ideas among peers. Learner-learner interactions are central to many learning theories and pedagogies (see social constructivism, communities of practice, problem-based learning, team-based learning and authentic learning as examples). As with learner-expert interactions, learner-learner interactions are often lacking in self-directed elearning experiences.

Finding A Way to Blend All Three

How can we help to blend in all types of interaction when we’re offering asynchronous, self-directed elearning at our libraries, and address the known disadvantages?

At the Colorado State Library, we developed a straightforward model for libraries implementing this kind of learning that blends all interactions. The model includes considerations and actions for both learners and their managers. The full model is available as a handout: Strategies for Online Learning Success.

Strategies for Online Learning Success

The model starts with questions to ask during a planning stage, where the learner and manager closely consider the needs of the organization and the learner, and look in advance at how the learning will be applied. The model goes on with suggestions for making a commitment to learning, through scheduling, clarifying expectations, and defining what success looks like.

Spending time in these early phases works to ensure the learning is relevant to the learner and to the organization, is being taken at the appropriate time, and is supported with time and scheduling. These phases begin to provide structure and support for the learner-content interaction even before the coursework begins.

The model then offers further structure to support the learner while consuming the course content. The bulk of the learner-content interaction takes place here. Learner-expert interactions also begin, with the manager mentoring on course content and assessing the learning.

Both learner-expert and learner-learner interactions are addressed in the last phases of application and sharing. Here the learner is coached in applying the material to the workplace by the manager. The learner goes on to relate with peers by sharing the course content and its application in brown bags, through tip sheets and more.

This model can be implemented or repurposed in your own environment to provide much needed structure to self-directed elearning and the necessary interactions that ensure deeper learning and successful application to the workplace.

There are certainly many other ways provide a blend of interaction to support self-directed elearning for staff. How are you supporting your staff with self-directed elearning? Are you allowing for learner-expert and learner-learner interactions? Please share your ideas, approaches, successes and failures in the comments.

Filed Under: Asynchronous Learning, E-Learning, Feature Tagged With: , , , ,

Welcome Mary Beth Faccioli and Russell Palmer

April 21, 2011 By

Please join me in welcoming our newest contributing authors to ALA Learning, Mary Beth Faccioli and Russell Palmer.

Mary Beth Faccioli, MLIS has worked in libraries since the mid-90s. Before that, she was a bookseller and manager, and before that, a research psychologist. In libraries, Mary Beth has worked in public services (reference and library instruction), in administration (library director) and in various web, graphic, multimedia and instructional design capacities. She is currently the Instructional Design and Technology Senior Consultant for the Colorado State Library, where she develops web sites, learning content and other services and resources that can be effectively delivered online. She is the lead producer for the State Library’s online meetings, seminars and learning events. Success in her career has come in part because of her ability to relate skillfully and empathically with non-tech-inclined learners and colleagues on technology-related topics.
Russell Palmer is the Supervisor of Professional Development at LYRASIS.  He has been with LYRASIS (formerly SOLINET) since May 2006 and works as the Supervisor of Professional Development. He writes and teaches classes on OCLC services, resource sharing, information literacy, and reference. Russell has spoken at various conferences, including the Georgia Conference on Information Literacy,  Reference Renaissance, LOEX,  and LOEX of the West . His interests include information literacy, reference librarianship, resource sharing, collection development and analysis, electronic resources and social media. Russell earned his MLIS from Florida State University. He began his career as Interlibrary Loan and Reference Librarian at  Mercer University in Macon, Ga., and later earned the rank of assistant professor and Instruction and Outreach Coordinator. At Mercer, Russell effectively developed and managed the library’s information literacy program.

Welcome to the team and our wonderful online learning community!

Filed Under: Feature, LearnRT News Tagged With: ,

Congratulations to Our Own Jay Turner

April 18, 2011 By

I’m happy to share the news that Jay Tuner, one of ALA Learning’s contributing authors, is the new director of continuing education for the Georgia Public Library Service. Jay is currently the training manager for the Gwinnett County Public Library. Jay is not only active within the Learning Round Table but is also active in PLA and on the ballot for director at large (if you haven’t won’t yet please do). Jay was selected as an ALA Emerging Leader in 2008 and since then, he has gone on to chair PLA’s Communities of Practice Taskforce and has been selected as a member of PLA’s 2012 Nominating Committee and the 2012 National Conference Programming Subcommittee. Jay was also called upon to provide input into PLA’s 2011–2015 strategic plan and the association’s strategic leadership session in 2009.

Please join me in congratulating Jay on his new position. Jay begins with GPLS on May 23rd.

Filed Under: Feature, LearnRT News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Spring CLO Symposium: Virtual Edition

April 18, 2011 By

CLO Virtual Symposium 2011 LogoI’m always a fan of free stuff (and learning from the big guys in enterprise training) so I thought I’d share that Chief Learning Officer magazine is offering an online version of their Spring Symposium on April 26th & 27th, 2011. Titled Learning Evolution: Alignment, Agility and Adaptability, there are several levels of registration, the free version includes all of these events:

  • ALL Workshops in Salon One, with a few titles below:
    • The Great Divide: Adapting and Aligning L&D Initiatives to Meet Worker Skill Realities
    • Learning at the Speed of Need
    • Adaptive Learning Design Principles and Best Practices
    • Accelerate Learning and Drive Behavior Through Social Networks and Informal Learning
    • Virtual Learning Environments: Trends & Insights
    • Creating an Adaptive and Innovative Learning Environment
    • Using Measurement to Improve Outcomes
    • Great Webinars: Crossing the Chasm from Classroom Training to High-Performance Virtual Delivery
  • Welcome Address from president and editor in chief, Norm Kamikow
  • Opening Keynote from Bill Jensen and Josh Klein, authors of Hacking Work: Breaking Stupid Rules for Smart Results
  • Access to the Expo Hall
  • Networking Lounge
  • Resource Center

Let me know if you’re attending, we can hit the backchannels together too!

Filed Under: E-Learning, Feature, Free Stuff, Synchronous Learning Tagged With: , , , , , ,

April News from ALA Learning

April 7, 2011 By

This month’s theme at ALA Learning is e-learning in libraries. What tools are you using and how are you using them? We want to hear your best practices (or biggest blunders) in self-paced learning, webinars, screencasts, social media for learning, etc. We want to hear from you! If you’d like to be a guest contributor this month please send your post along with a bio and photo to webmaster@alalearning.org.

Many thanks to our guest contributors last month on the topic of e-readers: Jasmine Posey and Angela Nolet. Be sure to check out the e-reader training materials posted on the ALA Learning Wiki under the topic Downloadable Media–special thanks to Mary K. Pelton, Jay Turner, and Chris Baker for their contributions to the wiki.

Do you have training materials to share? Please post them to the wiki. It’s easy, free, and a great resource for the community of learners we have here at the Learning Round Table.

Lastly congratulations to our contributing authors Buffy Hamilton and Bobbi Newman and Learning Round Table board member Angela Nolet on being selected as 2011 Library Journal Mover and Shakers. Your dedication and contributions to the library learning community exemplify the best in the profession.

Filed Under: Feature, LearnRT News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

APPLY NOW to be a sponsor or participant in the 8th Annual Training Showcase

April 6, 2011 By

Going to the ALA Annual Conference in New Orleans? Don’t miss the opportunity to participate in the training showcase!

Who: Trainers, Continuing Education Providers, Vendors of learning/education related products and services

Where: ALA Annual Conference, New Orleans, LA

When: Sunday, June 26, 2011, 1:30 – 3:30pm  

What: The training showcase is a poster-type session giving participants/exhibitors and sponsors a chance to showcase best practices in library training, learning, and continuing education. Participating affords you the opportunity to share information about your program as well as learn about the best practices of other libraries and organizations. The Training Showcase planning committee is on the lookout for libraries, library organizations, presenters, speakers and vendors to participate – anyone who has a great training or staff development program they’d like to share. The Learning Round Table is all about sharing ideas (and stealing/borrowing ideas) and the Training Showcase is the perfect venue. The Showcase normally attracts between 200-300 attendees – all of whom are interested in training and staff development. The number of participants (presenters) varies from 20-30. It’s a fast-paced, fun event with refreshments and door prizes. Each participant has a 6′ draped table on which to put a portable table-top display unit, handouts or other related materials.

Participant Application: http://bit.ly/trainingshowcase2011

Donor/Sponsor Application: http://bit.ly/showcase2011donors

Application Deadline: April 31, 2011

The 2011 Training Showcase will feature old favorites and new opportunities!

  • 6′ Tables for participants and sponsors
  • Showcase Sponsorship
  • Networking Opportunities
  • Refreshments
  • Door Prizes

HEY, THIS SOUNDS LIKE FUN.  I WANT IN!!

Filed Under: LearnRT News Tagged With: , , , ,

Greenwich Library’s e-Reader Training Program

April 6, 2011 By

The Greenwich Library followed up Overdrive’s September Training month with several months of hands on training for our desk staff.

  • October/November/December —-  hands on training in downloading and transferring audio books
  • January/February/March—– hands on training in downloading and transferring electronic books

I’ve trained nearly 40 full-time and part-time librarians.

I am now scheduled for two sessions each at each of our branches and one session at the Perrot Library in Old Greenwich.

We are pretty close to getting the funds to purchase 7 iPads, 6 color nooks, 4 black and white nooks, and 3 pandigital eReaders to circulate to staff only [6 week loan period] so that they can become more familiar with the electronic readers.

I personally own the Barnes and Noble color nook and the Kobo.

For library patrons we do one audio book program and one electronic book program each season. Patrons and staff have also been coming to our week drop in labs for help with either audio or electronic books.

In December and again this May we are doing a special program about eBooks. We have a staff member representing the various readers talk about their eReader for 15-20 minutes. What they really like about it, battery life, ease of use, would they buy it again. Patrons and staff can ask questions and at the end of the program I put the staff members in different corners of the room and patrons can talk to them about their players and use them.  We cover the sony eReader, Kobo, B/W nook, Color nook, Pandigital, Kindle and iPad.

Our local apple store manager has come twice to do programs with the iPad. He usually brings in about 10-15 and lets the staff and public handle them. We have to share because there are so many people who want to play.

Barnes and Noble is coming in early April to do a program with the nook in the evening. They are bringing nooks with them and we are telling everyone [staff and public] who got a nook for Christmas to attend this program.

Our library is sending at least 7 librarians to an electronic book symposium Trendspotting 2011: eBooks: Collections at the Crossroads in early April.  You can read more about our training programs here: http://ctlibrarians.org/.

Filed Under: E-readers/E-books, Feature Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

A Multi-Tiered Approach to E-Book/E-Reader Training

March 31, 2011 By

“Remember, the main reading screen of the Nook is not a touchscreen.  I know it’s a bit counterintuitive, but just spend some time with the device, and you’ll get the hang of it.  Trust me.”

This was a common refrain that I found myself repeating during the Shifting Into OverDrive e-book/e-reader training sessions that I hosted alongside Digital Media Selector Chris Baker in support of our rollout for the circulation of the Barnes & Noble’s Nook device to our customers and increased marketing of our OverDrive collection.   I’ll be completely frank and perhaps a bit cavalier here: some e-readers and e-book platforms are counterintuitive to use and downright frustrating to work with; however, e-books are a game changer, and we would be remiss to ignore them outright and the subsequent learning needs that staff and customers have as they begin to work with this new technology.

E-books are a game changer, and we would be remiss to ignore them outright and the subsequent learning needs that staff and customers have as they begin to work with this new technology.

From my vantage point at the front of the classroom, I almost immediately noticed that my learners fell into two general camps each time we taught the session: those who were extremely curious about the technology and couldn’t keep their hands off the new Nooks and those who were tentative, who gave the device a quick one-over but hesitated to take it out of the case, turn it on, and start poking around a bit.

Granted, this generalized observation likely ignores the nuances of each learner’s personal situation, but taken as whole, it provides a good rule of thumb for how to approach e-book/e-reader training.  Some of your learners will need a bit of hand-holding, while others will want to explore the technologies independently.  Since we often cannot determine upfront the various learning needs of trainees before we deliver technology training, it’s important that our classes provide a blend of practical instruction and self-directed exploration.

Each of Gwinnett County Public Library’s Shifting Into OverDrive training classes — designed specifically for managers, librarians, and Library Help Line staff — lasted three hours, with the session broken into three approximately one-hour chunks.  Chris and I would begin class with an opening that invites discussion about the future of the print book and then dive into providing contextual information regarding how circulating e-books and e-readers benefits the library and customers, as well as covering common terminology in the discussion of e-books (file formats, DRM, authentication, etc).  The second chunk of class is your classic see-and-do.  Attendees mirror my steps while I demonstrate installing the pertinent e-book software on a PC, locating an item for download, and then transferring it onto the Nook.  In the final segment of class, after I’ve given a brief tour of the Nook, staff is invited to handle the e-reader and learn how it works by choosing 10 preset tasks to perform.  There is no instruction here just — staff tinkering with the device and learning how to make it work.  Of course, learners are encouraged to work together to complete the exercises and to ask questions if they get stuck.

After our training sessions concluded, we wanted to provide activities and tools to support learning back in the workplace.  Our Materials Management department sent a Nook to each branch a few weeks before we began circulating the devices to the public so that remaining line staff could have an opportunity to explore our new product.  Attendees of the original live training were given access to my annotated presentation and handouts, and were encouraged to reinforce their learning by teaching other staff members in their branch about the Nook and our OverDrive e-book platform.  Finally, Chris and I have created a couple of help videos about downloading titles from our OverDrive collection and transferring them to the Nook and to an iPhone (other videos, such as downloading and transferring to a Droid device, are in the planning stages).

As with any training, there is no one-size-fits-all model, but my hope is that by sharing GCPL’s multi-tiered approach, you’ll have a solid place to start.

Filed Under: E-readers/E-books, Feature Tagged With: , , ,
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